Following up on my last email...
I’m going to walk you through the final step of sourcing off-market deals:
Writing a cold email script.
This assumes you’ve got your lead list in hand and you’re ready to start sending cold emails to prospects.
First, a couple things to keep in mind:
The key ingredient to a successful cold email is to personalize it as much as possible.
Avoid looking like spam at all costs!
Don’t use corny headlines, don’t do a blatant sales pitch, and don’t be pushy.
Small business owners are regular people. So write to them like a regular person.
Also, send emails from your own private address — Gmail, Yahoo, etc.
Small businesses get hit up all the time by private equity funds trying to buy them out. So buying a business email address to look more professional will work against you.
Plus, deliverability will be way better with a personal email that you’ve used for a long time.
Now...
Let’s get into actually writing the script.
The first paragraph
The intro should explain who you are, and why you’re reaching out.
Tell them your background and how that’s relevant to you buying their business.
Sell yourself — show that you’re a real person!
For an HVAC company, I might say something like:
“Hi,
My name is Ben Kelly. I’m married, I have 3 kids and a dog. I live in Southwest Florida. I was an Army officer for 6 years, and I worked at JP Morgan in the private bank. I own XYZ other businesses. I’m interested in potentially buying your HVAC company. Here’s why, and why I think I would be a great owner.”
The second paragraph
Now, tell them what you’re looking for.
”I’m looking for a profitable HVAC company in Southwest Florida that’s been around for at least 5 years, and is doing over $2M/yr in revenue. If this is you, I’d love to have a conversation.
Here’s my link to book a call.”
Put your CTA link at the bottom, and we’re done.
We want zero friction!
If they’re a good fit, they should be thinking:
“Huh, this Ben sounds like a nice guy. He seems legit, he wants to buy my business, and I fit all the categories he’s looking for! What the heck, why not. I think I’ll book a call.”
And down they go on the slippery slope into your Calendly link.
You can rewrite your pitch as you keep honing your outreach strategy.
But when you’re just starting out, this script will take you a long way.
Yes, that’s all there is to it... just two paragraphs!
Despite what private equity firms would have you believe, buying a business isn’t rocket science.
If you’d like help getting started on your first deal:
Fill out our 2-minute Interested Investor Survey here.
Or, if you’re looking to sell a business:
Tell us the details here, and we’ll help you find qualified buyers.
Stay tuned for the next issue,
— Ben Kelly
